GT3 Cup: Series 2010 schedule announced

NEW VENUE, FORMAT FOR PATRON GT3 CHALLENGE BY YOKOHAMA
New Porsche GT3 Cup car, addition of New Jersey event to go along with
returning sponsorship, television package in 2010
The Patron GT3 Challenge by Yokohama will mix a little of the new...

NEW VENUE, FORMAT FOR PATRON GT3 CHALLENGE BY YOKOHAMA
New Porsche GT3 Cup car, addition of New Jersey event to go along with
returning sponsorship, television package in 2010

The Patron GT3 Challenge by Yokohama will mix a little of the new with much
of the familiar for the 2010 season. The IMSA-sanctioned championship
announced a seven-event schedule on North America's finest natural terrain
road courses - with one new venue - to go along with a completely new 911
GT3 Cup racer from Porsche.

North America's leading one-make championship - in its sixth season of
pitting the continent's top semi-professional and gentlemen drivers in
Porsche's 911 GT3 Cup racer - adds New Jersey Motorsports Park just 40
miles southeast of Philadelphia to its schedule. The remaining rounds will
be in support of the American Le Mans Series, and all event weekends will
feature two 45-minute races with the exception of the stop at Mid-Ohio.

The championship format also is slightly different for 2010 with a
competitor's best 11 of 13 rounds counting toward the final point total.

As was the case in 2009, The Patron Spirits Company returns as the title
sponsor for the championship with Yokohama as the presenting partner and
exclusive tire supplier. All races will be featured elements of the series'
full-season television package on SPEED. Along with race recaps and
highlights, audiences will have the chance to learn more about the
personalities that make up the Patron GT3 Challenge by Yokohama paddock.

The series will be split into two classifications - Platinum Cup for the
new 2010 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and Gold Cup for the 2009 through 2005 version
of the GT3 racer. And for the first time, Porsche Motorsport North America
will performance balance the competition within the Gold Cup class.

The 2010 version of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car is based on the street-legal 2010 Porsche GT3 RS. The 911 GT3 Cup entry features a larger
displacement with its flat-six Boxer powerplant (by 0.2 liters) while
increasing power by 30 hp. It is nearly 1¾ inches wider than the 2009 911
GT3 Cup model, which allows for larger tires. The newly designed front body
panels - again taken from the 911 GT3 RSR - allow for more efficient aero
on the front end with a lower front spoiler lap that increases more
downforce at the front axle. Likewise a larger rear wing provides
additional downforce at the rear of the car.

Inside the cockpit, an additional vent in the upper part of the front lid
provides the driver with a better supply of fresh air. The controls for the
Info Display are now positioned directly on the steering wheel housing. And
in addition to fore-and-aft adjustment, the steering wheel may now also be
adjusted for height as on the regular production car.

The 2010 season kicks off at Sebring International Raceway on March 18-19
as part of the 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from
Florida.